Activision may be losing staff and facing a lawsuit at triple-A developer Infinity Ward, but in the background it seems a deal was brewing to tie-up with another top-tier developer.

Today Activision had announced a 10-year partnership with Halo developer Bungie. Through the deal Activision has exclusive, worldwide rights to publish and distribute Bungie’s next big action game IP, and all future games using that IP for the next decade.

Harold Ryan, president of Bungie, said:

We chose to partner with Activision on our next IP because of their global reach, multi-platform experience and marketing expertise. From working together over the past nine months on this agreement, it is clear that Activision supports our commitment to giving our fans the best possible gaming experiences.

Thomas Tippl, Chief Operating Officer of Activision Blizzard, added:

Bungie has developed some of the most compelling and successful games, multiplayer experiences and thriving fan communities, and this alliance underscores our long-standing commitment to foster the industry’s best creative talent.

Bungie will remain independent and is free to continue developing other games and more IP outside of this deal with Activision.

Let me guess, Bungie weren’t talking to the same people at Activision that look after Infinity Ward?

I should think Activision management were on best behavior when talking with Bungie. Getting them to sign a 10-year partnership is a massive deal, and if the next IP produced is a big as Halo Activision won’t really need to worry about what happens to the CoD franchise any more.

You do have to wonder what enticed Bungie to sign for so many years, though. It must be a fantastic deal, I just hope they didn’t agree to any performance-related bonus payouts.